There is a new king of the skies in the Pacific and it’s not Air New Zealand or Qantas.

Fiji Airways has been recognised as the Skytrax Best Airline in Australia and the Pacific at the prestigious 2023 World Airline Awards, held on Tuesday night at the Paris Air Show.

In 2022, Fiji Airways was ranked third in the region – behind Qantas (which has won the award for the last four years) and Air New Zealand.

This year, the airline have leap-frogged their two largest competitors to be declared Best Airline in Australia and the Pacific.

This is the first time that Fiji Airways has won this accolade while also retaining the award for the Skytrax Best Airline Staff in Australia and the Pacific for the third year in a row.

Fiji Airways has also improved its ranking in the Global Top 100 airlines, leapfrogging from 36th in 2022 to 15th in 2023 to finish ahead of Qantas (17th), British Airways (18th) and Air New Zealand (19th).

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Mr Andre Viljoen said these were big wins for a small airline in a highly competitive region for commercial aviation.

“Our unwavering commitment to quality service delivery is reason that Fiji Airways is today the Best in Australia and the Pacific. We may not have as much resources as larger airlines, but we have the Fijian spirit of hospitality and care. As the National Airline, we embrace and champion these values in everything we do, and this sets us apart as an airline.”

A high level delegation from Fiji Airways was in Paris, France last night to receive the awards on behalf of the company.

“I want to congratulate all the employees of Fiji Airways for these two awards for without their hard work and consistency, we would not be where we are today. I am confident the organisation will put as much effort into all our future endeavours and strive for excellence,” Mr Viljoen added.

“The fact that these awards are determined purely on guest feedback makes our two accolades all the more special. Our customers have consciously chosen Fiji Airways above all the other participating airlines in the region.”

Travellers across the world voted in the largest airline passenger satisfaction survey to determine the award winners with more than 20 million entries, and more than 325 airlines featured in the final results.

The airline continues to innovate, and introduce new strategies to grow the company, increase revenue and expand our global network.